Carolina Kostner eligible to compete in 2016 after settling dispute with WADA and Italian NADO

Press Release

5 October 2015 – The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) has issued a consent award in the disciplinary case involving the Italian figure skating athlete, Ms Carolina Kostner, the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) and the Ufficio di Procura Antidoping (UPA) of the NADO Italia, relating to an alleged violation of the Italian Anti-Doping Rules by Ms Kostner. The settlement agreement reached by the parties is embodied in the consent award which concludes the CAS arbitration. Ms Kostner will be eligible to compete as from the beginning of 2016.

On 30 July 2012, a Doping Control Officer (DCO) attempted to conduct a doping control on Ms Kostner’s then partner, Mr Alex Schwazer at the home of Ms Kostner. Ms Kostner falsely advised the DCO that Mr Schwazer was not at the premises. Ms Kostner has since recognised that she committed a serious error of judgement by misleading the doping control officer, and she has accepted that her conduct violated the Italian Anti-Doping Rules.

The parties have agreed to increase the sixteen month sanction imposed at first instance by the Italian National Anti-Doping Tribunal by five months. The resulting twenty one month ineligibility period is backdated to 1 April 2014 based on procedural delays that are not attributable to Ms Kostner. Ms Kostner will therefore be eligible to compete from 1 January 2016.

Tuesday, 06 October 2015